Putin Bans Crypto Payments, District Judge Sues SEC for Hypocrisy in Ripple Lawsuit, and South Park Criticizes Crypto Celebrities. These stories and more this week in crypto.
Russia bans crypto for payments
President Putin signed a national law to ban the use of digital assets for payments in Russia. Under the new law, digital assets cannot be accepted as consideration for goods and services within the country. In a statement, the Kremlin said it does not want any “currency substitute” to be used in place of the ruble.
The judge calls out the SEC for hypocrisy
A federal judge in Manhattan has ordered the SEC to release documents related to its expert witnesses in its court battle with crypto firm Ripple. The SEC’s attempt to shield the identities and opinions of its experts from any public scrutiny is unprecedented, and the judge calls the agency’s continued efforts to do so “hypocrisy.”
Celsius declares bankruptcy
Troubled cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network became the latest to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The filing reveals a $1.2 billion shortfall on its balance sheet. This happened weeks after it froze user accounts, essentially locking them out of their funds. According to Celsius, the need for bankruptcy protection will help it in the restructuring process.
Crypto staff cuts continue
OpenSea, the world’s largest marketplace for NFTs, has announced that it will cut around 20% of its workforce. The market joins other crypto companies like Coinbase, Gemini and Crypto.com in announcing staff cuts. CEO and co-founder Devin Finzer said the company should prepare for the possibility of a prolonged downturn.
MATIC from Polygon Jumps on Disney Partnership
Polygon’s MATIC token is up nearly 30% after being the only blockchain company selected for Walt Disney’s 2022 Accelerator Program. Disney’s business development program is designed to accelerate the growth of cutting-edge entertainment companies. This year, the program focuses on augmented reality, non-fungible tokens and artificial intelligence.
A Playboy mansion in the Metaverse
A Playboy mansion is coming to the metaverse, as the firm has announced a licensing partnership with Ethereum-based metaverse project The Sandbox. The “Metamansion” will include NFT collectibles, scheduled events, social games and gaming experiences. Playboy entered the Web3 space last spring with its Genesis NFT drop featuring art from the Playboy archives.
Swiss Post Office Goes Crypto
The Swiss Post Office is planning to create a cryptocurrency trading and custody product following strong user demand. Available through its banking division PostFinance, the service is likely to be available by 2024 at the latest. PostFinance is not only the banking arm of the Swiss post office, but also the fifth largest retail bank in Switzerland with over 2 million customers.
South Park Slams Crypto Celebrities
A new episode of South Park takes aim at cryptocurrency promotions made by celebrities in the past year. The episode spends most of its time on Matt Damon, alluding to his widely discussed announcement for Crypto.com, but FTX-endorsing tennis star Naomi Osaka and celebrity NFT investors like Gwyneth Paltrow and Reese Witherspoon was also enough sung in the animated series. crypto celebrity roast.
That’s what happened this week in crypto, see you next week.
